Fatal Traffic Accidents

Harford County Officials Note Heavy Increase in Fatal Traffic Accidents in February

April 30, 2012 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

If there’s one thing that Maryland families shouldn’t have to worry about, it’s being killed in a traffic accident. But the fact of the matter is, all manner of accidents happen to good people, regardless of how safe they feel or what they do to avoid becoming statistics. This is especially poignant in light of a news article we ran across not long ago, which stated that fatal roadway accidents had taken a huge leap back in February.

As Maryland personal injury lawyers, as well as auto and trucking accident attorneys, I and my colleagues are painfully aware of the odds that an individual, perhaps someone’s mother, father, spouse or child, will be killed as a result of a highway collision caused by a negligent driver. If this wasn’t sobering enough, the shear randomness of some traffic accidents can be very nerve-wracking to some people.

Here in Baltimore, as in other cities like Gaithersburg, Howie and even Washington, D.C., car, truck and motorcycle accidents take place on a shockingly frequent basis. Protecting one’s family from a potentially life-altering and sometimes deadly occurrence can weight heavily on some parents. With not rhyme or reason to many automobile and trucking-related wrecks, all one can say is be aware of the potential dangers and drive defensively.

Anne Arundel Prosecutor’s Office Charges Maryland Driver with Vehicular Manslaughter following Rte 100 Car Crash

April 29, 2012 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Here in Maryland the police are fairly strict when it comes to reckless driving and endangering the lives of other on public roads. And why not? Every year hundreds of people are hurt or killed in senseless car, truck and motorcycle accidents in and round cities like Bowie, Cumberland, Rockville and even Washington, D.C. As Baltimore personal injury attorneys, we know how a so-called simple instance of aggressive driving can result in one or more people being sent to the hospital, or worse.

Until and accident occurs, much of the potential collateral damage and bodily injuries from a car or trucking-related roadway collision are just that, potential; unrealized until someone makes the wrong move. It’s difficult enough these days to avoid becoming a part of a random car wreck, much less have a thoughtless motorist up the odds that you or a loved one could be injured or killed as a result of a pointless highway or expressway collision.

Yet, every month, drivers from all around our state face an uncertain future due to serious injuries sustained in traffic accidents not of their own making. For those individuals who act irresponsibly on public roads, they should be held accountable for their actions. Accidents surely happen, but some “accidents” do not need to happen.

Victim of Traffic-related Pedestrian-Car Accident Succumbs to Her Injuries 3 Months Later

April 27, 2012 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Representing individuals hurt or injured in automobile accidents, I and my colleagues are more than mildly aware of the potentially deadly results of car, truck and motorcycle wrecks. While injuries received in most traffic accidents may not result in serious medical complications or long-term disability, the possibility still exists. Of course, we also help the families of victims who have been killed in fatal roadway collision.

Whether through extreme negligence or even a lack of proper caution on the part of another person, the injuries sustained by a driver or passenger of a car, SUV, minivan, or vehicle used for public transportation, can be extensive. From cuts and bruises to compound fractures, internal injuries or closed-head trauma, a number of bodily injuries can continue to dog a person weeks or months — sometimes even years — down the road.

Some victims never leave the hospital after being hurt in an automobile or commercial trucking accident. These hapless, innocent victims linger for day, weeks or even months and years before they sadly cannot cope with the medical complications of their injuries. In such instances, the person’s bodily functions begin to ebb regardless of how much treatment is performed on the victim. In the end, the family must cope with the loss of a loved one, who may have continued to suffer in pain and discomfort all during their failed recovery.

Baltimore Auto Safety Update: Doctors Press Maryland’s Legislature to Change Child Safety Seat Standards

March 21, 2012 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

As we have reported on in the past, our children are some of the most innocent of victims when it comes to traffic accidents here in Maryland and across the U.S. as a whole. Anything that can be done to better protect these youngsters from injury or death as a result of a car, bus or trucking-related accident would be well worth the time and effort expended on such an endeavor.

As Maryland personal injury lawyers, I and my staff of legal professionals are dedicated to our clients, many of whom have been hurt or injured as a result of another driver’s negligence or thoughtlessness. Whether those actions involve deliberate flouting of our traffic laws or other statutes created to make our society a safer place; or if the defendant was simply not paying attention to the job of driving a motor vehicle correctly, a personal injury lawsuit is often called for.

Many times, victims and their families are left to foot the bill for thousands of dollars of medical bills and physical rehabilitation costs following an injury-related traffic collision. Insurance companies will often try to lessen the payout, which leaves those injured victims with little or no option. For families with small children, the last thing anyone wants is for that little boy or girl to be hurt in a car or truck crash.

Baltimore Maryland Personal Injury News: Driver found Innocent of Neighbor’s Death following Fatal Late-night Pedestrian Accident

March 17, 2012 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Pedestrian injuries and fatalities can happen anywhere people on foot mix with automobile traffic; whether in crosswalks, at bus stops, near taxi stands or on neighborhood streets, there always exists the potential for an individual to be hit or run over by a commercial vehicle or passenger car; even as a result of a motorcycle collision.

Auto-pedestrian traffic accidents are not simple incidents, since they can very often result in serious injuries to the relatively unprotected and helpless victim. Numerous bodily injuries are possible as a result of pedestrian collisions (which also include car-bicycle crashes as well). The injuries sustained can range from minor cuts and bruises to more serious broken bones and compound fractures.

In addition, back and neck injuries can occur; and many times the worst can be a closed-head, or traumatic brain injury. As Baltimore, MD, personal injury attorneys representing individuals in Maryland and Washington, D.C., we understand how extensive these injuries can be, and also how difficult it is for a person to recover from one or more of the more serious ones.

Maryland Traffic Injury News: Fatal Anne Arundel County Auto Wreck Kills Well-known Jazz Musician

March 13, 2012 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

If anyone needs an example of the many senseless and deadly car, truck and motorcycle accidents that take the lives of thousands every year in this country, it would be the recent automobile crash that killed jazz bassist Joe Byrd just last week. Right off the bat, we should mention that Mr. Byrd was the victim here, killed as a result of a two vehicle collision that police say was caused by another driver with an apparently bad driving record.

As Maryland personal injury attorneys, I and my colleagues have seen too many people killed, maimed or disabled for life to believe that fate is kind to those people caught in serious car accidents. From drunken drivers to aggressive individuals behind the wheel, too many passenger vehicle and commercial trucking accidents happen as a result of inattention, distraction, speeding, or just plain negligence.

According to news reports, the accident that killed Mr. Byrd was not caused by a driver unaccustomed to run-ins with the law. The suspect apparently had a great many instances of having his license suspended for likely serious traffic offences. I’m sure that many people have heard the voices of safety advocates calling for stricter measures for multiple traffic offenders; here is one example of how one individual essentially stole the life of another.

Harford County Auto Accident News: Maryland Motorist Killed after Car is Hit by Tractor-Trailer Rig

March 3, 2012 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Patience may be a virtue, but impatience can be downright dangerous, especially when one is operating a motor vehicle. Whether here in Baltimore, out in Gaithersburg or over in Washington, D.C., traffic control signals and traffic laws exist for everyone’s safety. When one person goes outside the boundaries of the law — whether due to selfishness, ignorance or outright neglect — someone is bound to be harmed. It may not happen today or tomorrow, but it will eventually happen.

Whether one drives for a living — such being a commercial trucker, school bus driver or a limousine chauffeur — or one is just a private car owner, following and obeying traffic laws is essential to safe vehicle operation. By extension, keep one’s vehicle safe means keeping one’s own self safe as well as any passengers that you may have traveling with you.

Being Maryland personal injury lawyers and representing individuals who have been hurt as a result of another driver’s negligence, we can say unequivocally that that lack of patience or ignorance of traffic safety laws and rules of the road can get a person injured or killed just as easily as stepping off the top ledge of a 10-story building. One difference between falling from a tall building and being hit by another vehicle on the highway is that it’s a great deal more obvious what is going to happen should one step away from the relative safety of that rooftop.

Maryland Car Accident News: Two Children Die in Multi-vehicle Prince George’s County Traffic Accident

February 20, 2012 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Car, truck and motorcycle crashes can be horrendous events depending on the circumstances. For many people, a minor traffic accident can shake one up, cause some cuts and bruises, and leave the family vehicle in less than good-running condition; on the other hand, a bad highway collision involving a more than one car or even a commercial truck can result in serious injury and sometimes death.

As Maryland personal injury attorneys, I and my staff recognize the extreme physical and emotional damage that likely can occur following a terrible automobile or trucking wreck. In addition to potentially broken arms, legs and other bones, an occupant of a vehicle involved in a high-speed crash can receive head, neck and spinal injuries. In the worst cases, fatalities are not unheard of.

Because most cars and trucks are powered by gasoline and diesel engines, the danger of a fire is quite common, especially if one of the vehicles’ fuel tanks is ruptured during the crash. Although automobile manufacturers attempt to design and build their cars and trucks to withstand certain crash forces, the fact that nearly every car or truck on the road is riding around with the explosive potentail of more than a few sticks of dynamite in our fuel tanks can be quite eye-opening to some.

Annapolis Traffic Accident News: Four People Die in Deadly Head-on Collision on Maryland Rte 50

February 15, 2012 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Hundreds of people are killed every year in head-on traffic accidents all across the United States. Here in Maryland, we certainly have our share of tragic collisions where a vehicle crosses over the centerline of a two-way street or highway and collides with another car or truck. Depending on whether one is riding in a passenger car, commercial truck, city bus or motorcycle, the results of a head-on wreck can range from severe to downright deadly.

Fatal head-on collisions can occur for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is drunken driving; however, cellphone use, texting, fiddling with the radio, carrying on distracting conversations and other in-vehicle disturbances can draw the driver’s attention from the singly important task of operating a 3,000-pound vehicle on a public road. Especially at highway speeds, a moment’s distraction can easily turn out to be fatal. Being personal injury lawyers here in Maryland, as well as auto accident attorneys, I and my colleagues know the dangers that distracted driving can present.

While every driver has likely considered the almost unthinkable results of a head-on crash while traveling along an undivided highway or surface street, the odds of having a head-on wreck when driving on the interstate or other divided roadway seems rather remote. Yet, as we were reminded not long ago, this kind of potentially fatal car, motorcycle or commercial truck accident is possible, and does happen from time to time.

Baltimore Auto Accident News: Two Multi-car Crashes in Maryland Result in One Fatality, Several Injuries

February 13, 2012 | Lebowitz & Mzhen

Being hit by another vehicle can, without a doubt, by a shocking and nerve-shattering event for anyone in a passenger car. Few traffic accidents are uneventful experiences, though fatal car crashes are, thankfully, not as common as those causing minor to severe injuries. Nevertheless, fatal and near-fatal roadway collisions are a sad fact of life these days; which can make driving in Baltimore, Gaithersburg and the District a nail-biting way of life for many commuters.

Injuries from car, motorcycle and trucking-related accidents abound and include a range of injury from minor cuts and bruises, abrasions and first-degree burns, to spinal cord damage, closed-head trauma and life-threatening nearly full-body burns. Motorcycle riders injured as a result of a car- or truck-collision make up one of the most at-risk groups when it comes to fatal traffic wrecks; even those who survive horrendous car crashes can face weeks or months of medical treatment, not to mention months of physical rehabilitation and possibly years of continuous care.

News of a couple traffic accidents caught our eye a while back. These two multi-vehicle collisions resulted in one death and a number of injuries. In Howard County, according to news reports, a three-vehicle collision out in Ellicott City, resulted in one person being critically injured along a stretch of Rte 100. The victim, a 31-year-old local woman, was taken to the hospital in condition following a Monday evening wreck.